Have your say on England men this summer

Live Reporting

by Mike Peter

  1. Play to start at 14:00 BST

    My word, we'll have play!

    I'll be honest, when I saw the forecast for today I didn't think we'd have any chance of play at all on day three.

    But the umpires say we're good to go, so after a bit more mopping up from the groundstaff we'll be underway in just under half an hour.

  2. Stephan Shemilt
    BBC Sport cricket correspondent at Lord's

    England's coaching staff have emerged, Pakistan's players are out kicking a football around. Encouraging. Just as I say that, a start time is announced.

  3. Michael Vaughan
    Former England captain on Test Match Special

    I said last night that this Pakistan batting line-up is not one to judge your bowlers against, but when you look at the team, you can only beat what's in front of you and they're dominating this series.

  4. Jonathan Agnew
    BBC Chief Cricket Commentator on Test Match Special

    Things are happening. I am not saying it is the end of the rain because it isn't but we might get lucky.

  5. Michael Vaughan
    Former England captain on Test Match Special

    I think the key to the four pace bowlers is the opening bowler, Ollie Robinson, because you look back to the winter and we were crying out for a tone setter.

    Brydon Carse is a great all-rounder but Australia were getting off to a flying start with him. Consistency, whether you're going out with an opening batting pair or bowling pair that can get you off to a flyer.

    I look at Ollie Robinson and I trust that first over will be a decent first over just to get into the Test match.

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    Sat at Lord's in the Heyhoe Flint stand with my wife Maria on her birthday and first trip to the Home of Cricket after I promised her we’d see some play. Can this be arranged please?!

    John, Lord's

  7. Jonathan Agnew
    BBC Chief Cricket Commentator on Test Match Special

    Some of the covers have been removed. It is looking clearer in the west in that we can now see the buildings.

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    Early in my teaching career in 2003 and had tickets for the South Africa Test at Trent Bridge. It was our school summer fair and I was expected to attend. I told the head I had a very ill grandmother, only to be spotted on the TV in the middle of the beersnake.

    Ben

  9. Inspection at 13:15

    I must say, there's a heartening number of people in the stands at Lord's given the forecast - a good few more than when these photos were taken.

    I am actually just watching one of the outer covers being rolled back - that's because we've just heard there will be a pitch inspection at 13:15 BST.

    Hope, faint hope.

    RainReuters
    RainGetty Images

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    Attended a rugby buddy's wedding in Reading. Got rather tipsy. Missus drove me the next morning to Llandudno for a cup game. Opened the batting hungover. Edged a four first ball, clean bowled the next. Captain was not impressed nor was my missus.

    Gareth, Wrexham

    I spent six hours travelling back from a friend's birthday party (6am wake-up after a 3am finish) via bus and train, only to miss a straight one first ball.

    Joe at Lord's

  11. England fielding coach Sarah Taylor, speaking on Test Match Special on how she's finding her role with the men's team: "I've absolutely loved it. It came as a bit of a shock but absolutely jumped at the chance as soon as I was asked. It's just a great experience and I'm learning a lot. I'm still young in my coaching career but it's been a pretty good summer."

    On working with Jamie Smith standing up to the stumps: "I don't think he has done it that much previously, so this was a little bit of a shock this summer where the surfaces almost told him to go and stand on the stumps but we've worked extremely hard. Every training session he's been doing keeping. The standing up has been a bit more prevalent now. In terms of technical stuff, he's an extremely good keeper, he's got an excellent pair of hands and it was a case of enhancing what he had and keeping him more still than what he used to.

    "The direction of which he faces was slightly open and now we've gone down the wicket. There's a couple of things we've tinkered with and more consistency in what he's doing. Just that push to try and do some form of standing up very single session that we do and again he's the one that pushed it. He's working extremely hard and reaping all the benefits out there."

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    Slight variation, I played indoor cricket the day after our wedding. Then took my new wife to a Test match on honeymoon. It was the fifth test in Antigua (April 1986), celebrated our 40th in April this year.

    Chris, Marlborough

  13. Michael Vaughan
    Former England captain on Test Match Special

    On whether Joe Root will end his season after this Test series to go on work on his game:

    No, he'll be playing one-day cricket. He loves playing cricket. It's worked for him for many years, so I can't imagine he won't want to play. He'll work it out.

    He'll have plenty of time to go and work. It'll be a mental problem as much as a technical problem.

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    Picked up at the finish line of the Birmingham 10k, put into bowl and opened the bowling. Lasted 3 overs before cramp ended the spell.

    Nathan, Dudley

  15. Phil Tufnell
    Former England spinner on Test Match Special

    I think the whole style of seam bowlers has changed because he's used to the channel where it swings away. I think now the seamers are looking to blow the pads off with DRS and all this kind of stuff.

    With Joe Root as well, I know it might sound silly, but it rushes into his pad. It thuds into that front pad, not just like, 'oh, he just missed it', it's on him almost a bit too quick.

  16. Michael Vaughan
    Former England captain on Test Match Special

    On Joe Root's form this summer:

    He's been a great problem-solver during his time in cricket you don't play for the time he's played and score the amount of runs he's had without going through tricky periods.

    I remember Josh Hazlewood used to get him out a lot with that nip back. He's had this area of his game challenged before.

    I do think the keeper stood up tactic has probably thrown a spanner in the works that he's probably thought for the first time, 'I've got a problem that I don't have an answer too'. He will go away and he will work on it to make sure he does have an answer to that, I trust in that.

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    Holidays - my dad used to drive me, my mum and dog 90 miles to the coast on a Saturday morning, drive back home 90 miles to play cricket for his team, then drive the 90 miles back to the coast to join us that evening. The rows were nuclear.

    Nicola

  18. How's stat?!

    Andy Zaltzman
    Test Match Special statistician

    Over his whole career up until his current run, Joe Root had 25 lbws to seamers in 161 Tests, so you would expect it once every six and a half Test matches, so about once a summer.

    He's had seven this summer which ties the all-time record for lbws in an international season.

  19. Michael Vaughan
    Former England captain on Test Match Special

    On Joe Root's form this summer:

    He's always going to have balls that nip and you miss them, it's cricket. He needs to find a technique where the front foot is a bit more balanced and that will allow his bat to get out in front of his pad and have a real mindset to hit that ball.

    He's not going out there to miss the ball but if you look at some of his dismissals this summer, he's missing the ball by a few inches which for Joe Root is a big miss.

  20. Well, I'm not sure I have the requisite level of celebrity to make these wishes notable, Tom, but happy birthday nonetheless from both me and my colleagues dotted around the office in Salford.

    Anyway, still no updates from Lord's as yet and I wouldn't necessarily expect any.